At least 41 dead in New York area storms: Officials

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People view a flooded street in Philadelphia. — AP
People view a flooded street in Philadelphia. — AP

New York - Remnants of Hurricane Ida wallop the East Coast region with record-breaking rain, drowning people in their homes and cars.

By Agencies

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Published: Fri 3 Sep 2021, 1:58 AM

Last updated: Fri 3 Sep 2021, 2:01 AM

The death toll from flash flooding caused by rainfall brought by the remnants of Hurricane Ida surged to 41 on Thursday, according to officials.

“I’m saddened to report that as of right now, at least 23 New Jerseyans have lost their life to this storm,” New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy told reporters.


New York City police said 12 people were killed, while another three died in the suburb of Westchester, officials said.

Three people also died near Philadelphia in Pennsylvania, an official there confirmed. The death toll from flash flooding caused by rainfall brought by the remnants of Hurricane Ida surged to 41 on Thursday, according to officials.


A stunned US East Coast faced a rising death toll, surging rivers, tornado damage and continuing calls for rescue after the remnants of Hurricane Ida walloped the region with record-breaking rain, drowning more than two dozen people in their homes and cars.

“I’m saddened to report that as of right now, at least 23 New Jerseyans have lost their life to this storm,” New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy told reporters.

At least 12 people died in New York City, police said, one of them in a car and 11 in flooded basement apartments that often serve as relatively affordable homes in one of the nation’s most expensive housing markets.

Another three died in the suburb of Westchester, officials said.

Three people also died near Philadelphia in Pennsylvania, an official there confirmed.

In New York City, Sophy Liu roused her son from bed and put him in a life jacket and inflatable swimming ring as their first-floor apartment flooded in Queens.

Unable to open the door against the force of the water, she called friends for help. The water was nearly 5 feet high when they came to her rescue, she said.

“I was obviously scared, but I had to be strong for my son. I had to calm him down,” she recalled as medical examiners removed three bodies from a home down the street.

In another part of Queens, water rapidly filled Deborah Torres’ first-floor apartment to her knees as her landlord frantically urged her neighbours below — who included a baby — to get out, she said. But the water rushed in so strongly that she surmised they weren’t able to open the door. The three residents died.

“I have no words,” she said. “How can something like this happen?”

Ida’s remnants maintained a soggy core, then merged with a more traditional storm front and dropped an onslaught of rain on the Interstate 95 corridor, meteorologists said. Similar weather has followed hurricanes before, but experts said it was slightly exacerbated by climate change — warmer air holds more rain — and urban settings, where expansive pavement prevents water from seeping into the ground.

The National Hurricane Center had warned since Tuesday of the potential for “significant and life-threatening flash flooding” and moderate and major river flooding in the mid-Atlantic region and New England.


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